Butterfly's Tree
by BANIX
Summary: He is like a huge tree, unmoving and strong. She is like the butterfly, always flitting about. When she gets tired, she would seek refuge and rest in the shade of the tree. She is the butterfly, and he is her tree. (Reincarnated OC)
1. Chapter 1- Tree

I never amounted to anything much in life.

Plain, normal, boring, nerd. That's what people used to describe me.

Not like I brought myself to care, I'm too lazy to. It's not that such words don't bother me, they do, but I… am just too lazy to do anything about it.

I procrastinate a lot because I don't have an interest in studying or pretty much anything. I didn't do well in university. I either fail or barely pass my exams. It's not that I'm dumb, I know I'm not dumb even if I'm definitely not the smartest. It's just… it's just…

Studying is so _boring_, you know?

I don't feel like I'm learning. I don't feel the excitement to learn something new whenever the lecturer goes through a new topic. I find it a drag, a chore. It's tiring. I think that I might have picked the wrong major but on hindsight, I think it would be the same no matter whatever subject I chose to major in.

I just don't find joy in learning anymore.

Maybe it's because I chose my major on the basis that it might make me rich in the future if I specialise in a certain profession? Is that why I don't find joy in learning?

I would never know. I met my end before I had the chance to change my decision.

It came as utterly no surprise that such a boring person like me who had done nothing and contributed nothing to society got reborn as a sickly child in a family stricken with disease and poverty.

The catch?

_This is the period of feudal Japan._

I guess this is karma.

I don't know which period exactly, but it's not like it would have made much of a difference even if I do know. I never bothered to learn about Japan's history.

In this new body, I cough a lot as a child. My arms were weak. I caught a flu every month or so. I could barely hold a spoon without my hands trembling.

This new father of mine, if I would ever refer to him as that, is abusive. My new mother is too afraid of him to do anything. I have seven siblings, each of them older than me. Whenever my father left the house, we would all worry if he would come back drunk, for if he does, it means another round of beating for whoever earned his ire.

It doesn't help that in this new body, I have a speech impairment. My words come out slow. For example, if I want to say 'Good Morning', it comes out as "Good…Mor…ning…"

You can imagine the number of beatings I had gotten from my new father because of this. I'm surprised I haven't died a second time.

By the time I was five, my father deemed me to be a burden to the family. My siblings could at least somewhat contribute to the family by doing odd jobs or chores. I could not.

I was sold as a slave.

Some middleclass family bought me at a cheap price due to my sickly body. Maybe they took pity on me. Maybe they wanted to see if they luck out by buying over this sickly boy, hoping that I could be useful and last at least another year or two. If I could, this alone would make their investment worthwhile.

I could care less. At that point in time, I'm just wondering why I am even fighting to stay alive in this kind of shitty situation.

It's obvious that I have no rights as a slave. I couldn't do many jobs. My trembling hands made sure that I could not even serve a proper cup of tea. There's nothing I could do. I have no worth.

I'm just going to die another miserable death. Pathetic.

In the end, the head servant of the house gave up on me and shove an axe into my hands, telling me to just cut firewood until the day I die. Telling me to at least be useful to someone by cutting some firewood that keeps them warm at night.

Of course, I could not cut a single thing. I don't have the strength. I barely managed to lift up that rusty axe. In this sickly body, I have to be smart about it if I ever want to cut a piece of wood with an axe in hand.

No one expected anything out of me. I didn't expect anything out of this either. It's just that I probably would die soon, and I have all the time in the world to figure out how to cut a piece of wood with just an axe and with a body so frail a breeze could knock me down.

I really did have all the time in the world and I have nothing to lose.

I experimented for the fun of it. The angle I want to cut the wood. The force needed. How high I needed to lift the axe. How to plant both my feet. I even experimented if the way I breathe affected my efficiency.

The last part of woodcutting was the most crucial, but I only found that out many years later when I joined the Demon Slaying Corps.

By the end of the month, I made a good enough chip on the wood that is easily visible.

By the end of the second month, I could properly split the wood into two neat pieces in one blow.

By the end of the year, I could easily finish cutting up any amount of firewood given to me.

Suddenly, woodcutting seemed so much _fun_. I didn't know that such a mundane task could actually be fun. I invented creative ways to use the axe. I could even sculpt with an axe if I wanted to and it would not take much time at all. Such was the expertise I have with an axe in hand because I devoted all my attention and time into knowing how to use it properly.

For whatever reasons that was unknown to me back then, my body started to have visible changes. I no longer cough that much. My body is no longer sickly. I actually started to grow some muscles. I can actually run now.

I spent the next seven(?) eight(?) years cutting wood and playing around with the axe. I could not really tell how long I spent exactly in that backyard of my owner's house. Time passed without me realising it as I cut firewood from dawn to dusk every day, trying to experiment different ways to cut wood by changing the variables. The biggest breakthrough was figuring out that the way I breathe actually has a significant impact on woodcutting during my second year as a slave.

I figured that maybe by changing the way I breathe it affected the amount of oxygen I took in, helping me to surpass my limits. By the third year I was sold as a slave, I am no longer sickly. In fact, I am one of the strongest teens around in the backwater village I am in. Funny thing is, I had never ventured out of the backyard that I did my woodcutting. A slave like me is not allowed to do so anyway.

No matter what profession, people starts to notice you if you are good in your job. I was soon asked by the neighbours to help cut their firewood. My owner didn't mind as long as I did my share for his family. I didn't really mind because I had nothing better to do and finding new ways to use an axe was the only pastime I had.

The first time I really stepped out of the house was when there was a bear lurking on the outskirts of the village and all able-bodied men were called to cull it. I was sent in replacement of my owner. I was given an axe and nothing else. That's it.

It was when I travelled with the hunters did I realise how much fitter I am as compared to them. I ran a lot faster, walked a lot longer, jumped a lot higher. I could hold my breath underwater way longer than anyone could to the point that I found it unnatural. I could even move without making a single sound.

And then we found the hulking monster of a bear. Or rather, it found us in the dead of the night. Caught us all by surprise there.

By the time we realised that the two hunters in our group who were supposed to keep watch during the night were silently killed by the crafty bear, another three had been mauled to death. The bear was going for another two nearby who didn't have time to pick up their weapons. My axe was beside me. In my desperation, I picked it up. With courage I never knew I possessed, I leapt towards the bear and swung my axe with a single arm.

I cleaved the bear into two with one single swing.

I saved the villagers, my fellow hunters. However, whatever I did was clearly unnatural. They already had suspicions of me when we were travelling. I was way too fit to be humanly possible.

Humans fear what they don't understand.

My rusted axe couldn't withstand the force of my swing. It had broken just after I killed the bear. The people who were supposed to be my fellow hunters pointed their weapons at me after witnessing my superhuman strength, asking me if I am human, if I am possessed by some evil spirit or some superstitious nonsense. I didn't want to hurt them, I tried to explain myself.

But I also had a speech impairment, remember? It didn't help my case at all.

It was when someone was about to make the first lunge that the real demon struck.

Everyone was stunned.

It came out of nowhere. I had never seen something so grotesque, so evil, so revolting in my life before. I had never believed in the supernatural despite my reincarnation status, but right then?

_We were in **hell**._

By the time we regained our senses. Five people in our group were already dead, chunks of them being ripped out by that thing and they were being messily gobbled up. It snapped us out of it. People started to fight back in desperation, hoping to kill whatever abomination that thing is.

In just another second, everyone except me fell dead. Only I managed to react and avoid its attack in time.

Correction, that thing has buddies. There were a small group of them staring at me from above the treetops, eyeing me like some sort of caged rabbit about to be hunted.

I saw another axe nearby and I picked it up. A feral haze enveloped my mind. All I see were red. All that was in my mind back then is to fight back, to kill, to survive and not get eaten.

All I wanted was to survive this nightmare and to get out of this hell.

I never remembered what actually happened after that.

* * *

When I came to, I was lying on a soft bed, covered by a sheet of warm blanket. The sunrays were actually peeking through the windows. As a slave, I was never allowed to sleep in no matter how ill I felt. I needed to be awake before the rooster crows to chop firewood for everyone living in my owner's house.

Naturally, I jolted out of bed and tried to move, only for a dainty hand to stop me. With a gentle press to my chest, I was pushed back down onto the bed.

To add to my surprise, it was a petite girl my age who did that. I easily towered over her, yet she had the strength to push me down as if squashing an ant.

"Don't move, you are still recovering. You nearly died back there."

The girl with pale skin and large eyes that reminds me of those of bugs looked down at me with a scowl. And her hair… there is a purple tinge to it? Hair dyes are not a thing in feudal Japan, so I assume her hair colour is natural. Is having natural purple hair even genetically possible?

What's going on?

The girl turned around to mix some liquids on a nearby table, not really paying that much attention to me.

"Sorry that we were unable to find the demons in time. If we did, your friends need not have died. How did you kill all of them by yourself anyway? You didn't suffer any superficial wounds, at least none we could find, but it seems as if you burnt yourself out almost to the point of death. You killed them with nothing but a broken axe and your fists."

What? Demons? Oh, yeah, that. I guess its looks combined with its supernatural abilities could qualify it as a demon.

"And where did you even learn a Breath Style from? It's nothing we ever saw before."

Breath Style?

The girl turned back to face me, a cup in her hands.

"Drink this."

I gulped the whole thing down despite how horrible it tasted. At the very least, I'm still alive.

"What's your name anyway?"

This girl is an impatient one. It's like her face is always etched with either a frown or a scowl, sometimes both.

As for my name? I had forgotten my given name a long time ago, both my previous life and this one. I never liked my second family. My owners and the other servants back home simply call me the woodcutter.

"No… Name…"

I really dream of the day when I could speak properly once more.

The girl's eyes widened in realisation upon hearing my words.

"Oh. Slave, right?" She pointed to the mark that was branded on me when I first became a slave. The mark that sits on my right shoulder.

I nodded.

"It's fine now. We don't keep slaves here; you are now a free man."

It's like I struck a windfall.

Me? _A_ _free man?_

* * *

I was able to get out of bed to walk and run normally by the third day. In this period of time, I learnt many new things.

Demon Slayer Corps. Ubuyashiki Kagaya. Pillars. Demon Slayer. Breath Styles. Demons. Kibutsuji Muzan.

It's like some sort of crazy fictional story come to life.

_I would only know many years later that this world was indeed a fictional story in my past life. I only remembered after spotting a certain demon girl that carries a piece of bamboo in her mouth all the time._

The Demon Slayers here all claimed that I know how to use a Breath Style. They kept asking me who I learnt it from. I don't know how to answer them, and it does not help that I have a speech impairment. I was never taught how to write in Japanese either, so communicating with everyone else was difficult. Breath Style? I didn't even know such a thing existed until three days ago!

It took some time, but I managed to tell them that it may be related to my woodcutting experience. I did spend a lot of time thinking about the best ways to cut firewood after all. I had everything down to an art form.

They asked me to showcase my abilities. I simply shrugged and went with it. I had nothing better to do anyway.

I remembered that I could easily cut a bear into two with an axe that night, I tried to see if I could replicate that feat. There are no bears here, so I tried it on a few large trees with an axe I borrowed.

I fell them with ease. All I did was to casually swing my arm once at full force. Needless to say, I was taken aback. This is not supposed to be possible.

I felt bad about breaking the axe though. It could not withstand the force of the blow and broke just like what happened when I killed the bear.

The girl who I saw when I first woke up, who I now know as Kocho Shinobu, said that what I employed was definitely a Breath Style. Her older sister and also one of the nine Pillars, Kocho Kanae, said that I could already use Full Focus Breathing, and that I should join the Demon Slayer Corps with that kind of talent and strength at my disposal.

All I could manage as a reply was an unintelligible-

"…Ah?"

Not the most intelligible reply, but in my defence, I was really confused about the whole situation. My entire worldview had been turned upside down in a short span of a few days.

The leader of the Demon Slayer Corps, Ubuyashiki Kagaya, requested an audience with me. People call him "Oyakata-sama" within the Corps. He gave me two choices. I could go a free man and live my life however I please or join his little demon slaying army.

I had heard many things about Demons during my short stay here in the Headquarters. I know what kind of atrocities Demons do on a regular basis. I saw the type of wounds the injured Slayers suffered from their battle with Demons when the Kakushi carried them into the Butterfly Estate. I never did manage to do anything worthwhile with my life in my first life. I was a waste of space. Garbage. Maybe in this life, in this crazy era where Demons run amok, I could make myself useful. Maybe I can be needed.

If I could do something useful for someone, to make a difference somehow, then my life would be worth living.

I chose the second option and went to take the Final Selection. They gave me a katana before I head to the venue. Instead, I asked if it was possible if they could give me an axe that would not break if I swing it at full force.

With a single axe by my side, I passed the Final Selection with ease.

The axe never survived the first swing though, and I felt bad for destroying another axe. I had to survive the rest of the Selection with just my fists.

That was how I officially became a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.

* * *

I'm very sure that my blacksmith hates my guts, and rightfully so.

It had been established long ago before my Final Selection that the katana simply doesn't suit me. With the force I swing a weapon, a delicate weapon like the katana will undoubtedly crack. I have been wielding an axe the entire of my second life. I live and breathe with the axe. My blacksmith took this into consideration and forged me an axe, making me one of the few rare Slayers with an unconventional weapon in the history of the Demon Slaying Corps.

However, nothing my blacksmith made for me lasts. Every axe he made for me, regardless of size, I broke it with a single swing. I could not go demon hunting like this.

I'm very used to my blacksmith shouting vulgarities at me by the time I broke the fifth axe he forged for me.

Smithing a weapon takes time. In the waiting period, I volunteered to chop all the firewood that anyone needs in the Headquarters to try and make myself useful to others. I was kindly given a bed to sleep in the Butterfly Estate because I have nowhere to go.

Naturally, I had a lot of chances to talk to the Kocho sisters. The lower ranking Kakushis seemed to be afraid of them for whatever reasons, probably due to their status. I never understood the fear. The sisters don't even bite.

"You really don't have a name, huh?"

I shrugged at Shinobu's words as I continue to chop firewood. Nothing else I can do there.

"Stop chopping. We have more than enough firewood to go around for the next three days thanks to you. If you are so free, help me to mix some medicine."

I looked back at her, who had crossed her arms and is now impatiently tapping a foot against the ground in an impatient manner. She gestured with her head for me to follow her, which I did.

"Wisteria flowers are like poison to Demons. You do well to remember that if you want to be a Demon Slayer."

"Sunlight are also fatal to them. If a Demon is too strong for you to take down and you could not escape, try to delay them until dawn."

"Demons are immortal and while they used to be humans, they already lost their humanity, so there's no need to be kind to them. Kill them whenever you have the chance. If you find out _anything_ about Kibutsuji, you inform the Pillars or Oyakata-sama _immediately_, understand? Don't engage him on your own."

If there's one thing I found out about Shinobu, it's that she's brash and straightforward despite the permanent scowl on her face. She used it as a way to hide her compassion for others. She is secretly a tsundere.

She also disliked anyone making any comments about her height, and especially hated it when anyone makes a comparison between the two of us. I am one of the tallest and biggest people in the Demon Slaying Corps. My height and build is similar to the Stone Pillar Himejima Gyomei. Since I often helped out in the Butterfly Estate either by chopping up firewood or helping the Kocho sisters tend to the injured, many teasing comments were often made by the other Pillars about the height difference between me and Shinobu since she is one of the shortest person walking around.

It took a few months before my blacksmith returned with another weapon for me to try out. I had nearly thought that I was kicked out of the Demon Slaying Corps for breaking so many of their weapons with my newfound superhuman strength, and my blacksmith also took a long time to make his reappearance.

The new weapon is a gigantic double blade axe. The length of the handle itself is about one and a half times my height. The size of both blades took up nearly half the length of the weapon. There is also a thick and extremely long metal chain at the end of the handle. The entire weapon transformed into a dark black in colour when I first held it in my hands. People say that it is an inauspicious colour for a Demon Slayer because no known users of such a coloured blade lived a long life.

But I loved the colour black.

I can already visualise the number of things I could do with such a unique weapon by my side. I could tell from the first glance, that this is the weapon for me. The weapon didn't break no matter how forceful I swing it. With the chain at the end of the weapon, I could extend my reach and swing my battleaxe however I like at unexpected angles. My blacksmith really outdid himself.

I gave him the deepest bow I could to show my gratitude.

"Thank… you…"

"Just don't go and break this now, you hear me?! And don't you dare die!"

With those parting words, my blacksmith left in that usual grumpy manner of his.

"He… Angry?"

"No, Daiki, he isn't." Kanae said with a laid-back laugh and a hand over her mouth.

My name is now Daiki, which basically means Big Tree. Given my woodcutter status, I guess it's a fitting name that the sisters picked for me.

Shinobu gave the weapon I slung across my back a look over. It is easily taller than her.

"Are you seriously going to swing that thing around? Just how heavy is it?"

Extremely heavy, but I can manage it. My body is now apparently strong enough to match the Stone Pillar in pure physical strength. However, I had long since learnt that my speech impairment doesn't allow me to speak much. I have to heavily summarise my thoughts into a few words to get my point across.

"No… Problems..."

_Translation: I have no problems in wielding this weapon._

Shinobu raised a questioning eyebrow.

"If you say so. Good luck out there."

With those parting words, I set out on my first mission as a Demon Slayer.

* * *

Wake up, eat, train, eat, sleep, eat, hunt some Demons, sleep, repeat. That's my normal routine whenever I'm out for a mission. Once I'm done, I head back to the Butterfly Estate.

Kanae is very easygoing, inviting me to stay over the Butterfly Estate whenever I am given breaks in between missions to rest. I try my best to help out in the Estate whenever I do so because I feel bad otherwise. It would feel like I am taking advantage of their hospitality.

At least I gain some basic medicine making skills while I'm at it. They even taught me how to read and write in the Japanese language, which I am grateful for.

"You mix that wrong again!"

Shinobu is a really strict teacher when it comes to medicine. Kanae is a Pillar and is thus a very busy person, so the role of the teacher fell onto Shinobu. Most of the medical stuffs are mostly done by Shinobu.

It had been about two years since I was freed from a life of slavery and became a Demon Slayer. Due to whatever accident or natural talent that allowed me to gain my own Breath Style during my woodcutter days, I quickly rose through the ranks. Kanae and Shinobu told me this is because I am easily able to do what they call Full Focus Breathing. According to them, I had already been doing it before they found me.

It didn't really matter to me though. I don't feel like I am actively doing anything out of the ordinary.

My double blade axe is easily the heaviest weapon in the Corps. My style focus on one strike, one kill. Swinging an axe is tough work due to its weight, I need to make every swing count to conserve my strength. I need my attacks to be both destructive and precise. Hence, the one strike one kill motif in my attack style.

Every capable Demon Slayer have their own attacks that suit their style, like how the First Style for the Breath of Water is the Water Surface Slash. So far, I only needed three attacks for my Breath Style. Most Demons fell by my axe within the first strike. The strongest one I met so far lasted till the third strike.

I had no idea how to name my style. Shinobu got fed up with my indecisiveness while Kanae found it fun to think of a name for my style. Soon after, the whole Butterfly Estate were trying to come up with funny names for it.

I let them have their fun. If this can bring smiles to their faces, I don't mind.

Somehow, they decided on naming my breath style Breath of Tree. According to Kanae, it was Shinobu's idea.

Ubuyashiki had his children document it on official papers the existence of such a Breath Style once they learnt about it, classifying it as a branch under the Breath of Stone due to both Breath Styles sharing many similarities. Upon learning about this, Himejima could not stop crying tears of joy for reasons I never understood. I decided that it is better for my mental health if I don't attempt to understand. Each Pillar have their own eccentricity. It's like it is a prerequisite to be weird if you want to be strong in the Corps.

I invented seven different attacks for the Breath of Tree. I only needed the first three so far, but I am sure I would need the other four in the future. I am in the process of inventing the eighth and final attack, but that would take some time. That attack would be my strongest attack.

The fighting style of the Breath of Tree is different from most styles. I don't actively move in battle. Most of the time, I just stand there at my spot. I only react when Demons attack me, which most of them did upon spotting me. I'm like a tree, immovable and strong. Only when attacked did I use my axe to cleave the Demons down. If my axe doesn't have enough range, I swing it around using the long metal chain attached to the end of the axe like how Thor swings his Mjolnir. It gets the Demons ten times out of ten.

To me, no matter how fancy it is, a punch is a punch. A kick is a kick. A slash is a slash. A thrust is a thrust. There aren't much fancy movements to my attacks, just pure unrestrained power. I swung my axe with so much power and speed that any Demons I met only had two choices before they met their end. Either they try to kill me before I do to them, or they try to defend and run. Neither option had worked for them. I'm always faster and more powerful. There isn't anything I could not cut into two with my axe in the blink of an eye.

Kanae jokingly said that I might be at the level of a Pillar already. Shinobu huffed and said that I still have a long way to go and told me not to get conceited.

I honestly don't care if I ever become a Pillar or not, so I just smiled and waved it off.

What I only cared about now is to try and not die a worthless death like I did the first time around. If possible, I want to help do some good in my second life.

Being a Demon Slayer sounds like a good way to do so.

* * *

Another year passed. The Kocho sisters adopted a younger sister named Tsuyuri Kanao. She displays close to no emotions. She's unresponsive to pretty much anything that is not an order. Her responses are mechanical, something which you would expect out of a robot rather than of a human.

I don't speak much due to my speech impairment, so when people put me and Kanao together in a room in a last ditch attempt to see if I could trigger a reaction out of the emotionless girl when everyone else had failed, the only thing that filled the room is silence, much to the sisters' exasperation.

There's nothing much I can do for Kanao. The most I could do is to gather her some flowers or craft wooden dolls for her and hope it cheers her up. Even then, I think she is improving. Little by little, the Kocho sisters are slowly getting her to open up.

All is well.

"Here, take some food with you before you go."

Shinobu handed to me a box of riceballs and I accepted it gratefully.

"Thank… you…"

"We are past this stage, Daiki." She crossed her arms and tried to put up a nonchalant attitude. "Just don't die. Nee-chan and I had already saw too many of our comrades die, we don't want to see someone that we are close to dying again. Kanao would probably regress if she heard that you died as well."

"I… Won't… Die..."

I have no plan to die anytime soon with this second chance I was given.

"I will hold you to that."

She turned around and disappeared from view as she entered the Estate. I shook my head in amusement as I exited the Headquarters with the box of riceballs in hand.

I will never say it to her face because she will poison me if I did that, but Shinobu being a tsundere is really cute.

The riceballs tasted really nice too.

* * *

"Ara ara, the both of you are mixing medicine again. How sweet! What are you two brewing? Is that love that I smell in the air?"

"Shut up, nee-san. It's nothing like that."

After so many years, Shinobu and I being teased in this manner by Kanae is a regular occurrence by now. Teasing other people seems to be one of Kanae's favourite pastimes. I've built up immunity to Kanae's teasing, but Shinobu is still too easy to rile up.

"Daiki-kun, Shinobu and I will be on a mission for the next two weeks. Do you mind helping us taking care of the Estate and Kanao-chan in the meantime?"

I readily agreed. I am close friends with the sisters at this point, and I've learnt enough from them to be able to perform many types of treatments and mix different types of medicine.

"We will be back before you know it! See you!"

Little did I know, that was the last time I ever saw Kanae.

* * *

There is a vacant spot among the pillars after Kanae's death. Shinobu and I were both possible candidates since we are both Pillar-level in strength, or at least that is what Ubuyashiki said. I immediately declined the offer. That position should be Shinobu's. It is only right for her to take up her sister's position.

I still could not believe that Kanae was killed. She was kind-hearted and strong. Why is it always the good people who dies?

Shinobu's personality had a drastic change ever since Kanae's death. Kanae's death was the work of the Upper Moon Two. Shinobu adopts Kanae's personality now that Kanae is gone. Shinobu is now more laid-back, always having a serene smile on her face and is now always teasing people. She also developed a somewhat sadistic streak towards Demons.

All of these didn't hide the anger I know she is feeling. Other people might not see it, but I do. I've known her for a long time after all.

I have no idea what else I can do as a friend. I have no idea what I can do other than to try and be by her side as much as I can, to show her that she is not alone.

"I miss her, you know?"

It was two months after Kanae died. Two months after Shinobu took over Kanae's position as a Pillar. Shinobu was sitting alone on a roof during the dead of the night where she can finally drop her smiling mask after a long day. I kept her company. She didn't shoo me away like she did during the first two weeks after her sister's death, so I guess it's an improvement.

"I don't think I would ever be as good as nee-san. I don't even have the ability to cut off a demon's neck. I don't think I will be a good Pillar."

She was hugging her legs close to her chest, draping Kanae's haori over her, a memento to remind herself of her older sister.

I tried my best to cheer her up and comfort her. As much as someone with a speech impairment could anyway.

"You… can…"

Shinobu let out a silent laugh, face still buried into her knees.

"Thanks, Daiki."

"Your… Welcomed..."

She really did go on to become a great Pillar after that.

* * *

A few more years passed. Kanao grew up from a small little girl into a young adult in the blink of an eye. She is steadily reaching the strength of a Pillar. Shinobu is now always smiling and is not wallowing in grief, which is good.

The anger within her heart had never disappeared though. I'm still trying to do something about that.

I perfected my eighth and final attack in my Breath of Tree Breathing Style. I still haven't got around to name it. Nothing sounds right so far. I also haven't got around to using it in battle because things never got to that point.

When not out on missions, I continue to help out in the Estate. Some of the Pillars actively seek me out to do some rigorous training since they claimed my strength is on par with them. However, all nine slots are currently filled, so they couldn't give me the title of a Pillar.

I don't really care much about that title. I'm just glad no other Pillars died within these few years.

One fine day, Shinobu had gotten this crazy idea to kill the Upper Moon Two by turning herself into a living poison capsule. I had never gotten so mad in my life because by doing things her way, she is allowing herself to be eaten by said Demon to take it down.

In both my lives, I had never gotten so mad to the point that my body is physically trembling, not even when I was a slave. She's willing to use her life as the price to take down the Upper Moon Two.

All for revenge.

The worst part was that I could never get my words across thanks to my speech impairment. It made it difficult for me to talk her out of her crazy idea. Since words would not do, I used my bare hands and crushed the bottle of Wisteria Poison she was making and threw it out of the window.

On my end, I just don't want her to die. On her end, she couldn't understand why I am forsaking a good chance for us to take down an Upper Moon Two.

That was the first time we crossed blades.

Our battle was destructive, mostly thanks to me. Shinobu is like a butterfly, employing precise strikes as she darted around while my attack style is like a huge tree, unmoving in face of adversity but capable of utter pure destruction like a force of nature. Even roots can break through stone given time to grow.

After we were both restrained by the other Pillars and heavily reprimanded by Ubuyashiki himself, the both of us were confined and tied to our beds in the medical ward of the Butterfly Estate. We didn't go easy on each other in our violent fight.

Despite the fact that our beds were just next to each other, none of us talked or even faced each other. For the first time since I came to the Butterfly Estate, we said nothing to each other.

Due to my speech impairment, I always had a small piece of charcoal with me that I used to write like a pencil, in case there is a situation that I urgently need to convey a message. Without looking in her direction, I slipped her a piece of paper across the small table between our beds to tell her what I want to say.

_If you want to poison yourself, then poison me too._

If I cannot stop her on this suicidal path, the least I could do is to accompany her. At least this way, she won't be alone. Maybe instead of her dying, I could die in her stead so that she can live the life she deserves to live.

She never did anything to indicate that she received my message, but two weeks after we recovered from our injuries, I found a bottle of wisteria-based poison on my table. Attached to it was a detailed note in Shinobu's handwriting on how to safely administer it to myself.

The next day, everything between us went back to normal.

I'm not sure if I'm imagining things, but I think we became closer too.

* * *

It wasn't until after a particular Pillar meeting did I realised that I might have been reincarnated into a world which was previously fiction.

The sight of a little girl with a piece of bamboo in her mouth is too unique to forget. I remember that there was a series in my previous life with such a unique character, but I didn't have the time to watch it or even learn of its name. However, images of the series' protagonists were circulating about due to its popularity, and I know enough to recognise the little girl with a bamboo to be a main character. The only other things I know is that she has a brother with a mark on his forehead, some guy with the head of a boar, and some guy with yellow hair.

The description all fits. These are the same four people who are making the loudest din right now in the Estate.

Of all worlds to reincarnate into, it has to be a world that was once fiction. A world that I knew nothing about.

The demon girl's name, as I soon found out, is Nezuko. Her bond with her brother, Tanjiro, is really strong. I had heard from Shinobu that Nezuko had refused to eat or drink human flesh and blood even when faced with the temptation, all because of her love for her brother. I found Tanjiro to be a little naïve, but he has a good heart.

Someone so kind should not be a Demon Slayer, but I trust Ubuyashiki's judgement.

Inosuku and Zenitsu also show great potential, but other than that I don't really want to have anything to do with them. One is a battle-crazed lunatic, the other one is a womaniser.

There were a lot of patients that were sent into the Estate from the recent battle at Natagumo Mountain, so I stayed to help out. Shinobu got the three idiots to go thorough Functional Recovery Training when she deemed them ready to. Personally, I know that her sadistic side just wants to see them suffer a little.

The pig-headed boy kept challenging me the moment he saw the size of my weapon. He even tried to lift it up only to fail spectacularly. That was within my expectations. In the Corps, only Himejima and I could lift this heavy double blade axe with ease. In the Demon Slaying Corps, we both have the greatest physical strength with Kanroji being a close second.

I refused every challenge Inosuke directed at me. For one, it would be plain unfair. Two, I'm not exactly known for being able to control my strength. I might accidentally kill him. However, Inosuke challenged me one time too many and in my irritation, I slapped him away from me and sent him crashing into the nearby forest. I swore that I took careful measures to tone down my strength to not accidentally kill him or send him flying too far away.

Inosuke was still bedridden for the whole of the next one week thanks to my handiwork.

Shinobu scolded me with the usual smile on her face for doing that. I think she was deciding whether she should be mad at me for injuring her patient or to be amused at the outcome. On the bright side, Inosuke stopped bothering me after that while Zenitsu just ran away in fear whenever he spotted me.

I now have my peace and quiet.

"Be careful out there."

She would always see me off whenever I have to go for another mission. It has become tradition for us by now.

We both are too scared of losing anyone else close to us.

She is staying behind to oversee the progress of recovery of the patients from the Natagumo Mountain and to continue with the Functional Recovery Training. Shinobu is a good teacher, I have no doubt that she can beat the three idiots into shape.

"I… Will..."

She smiled at me once more as I turned and began the long trek to the destination of my next mission, my Kasugai crow perching on my shoulder and my gigantic weapon slung across my back.

If this is a fictional world from a popular manga/ anime series, then Shinobu's actions had certainly raised a few death flags, especially the turning her body into a poison bomb part.

I'm really worried about her.

I won't let her die. She had been nothing but kind to me ever since I met her, even if we did fight a few times. Both my lives had been worthless, nothing of note until I joined the Demon Slaying Corps. If I can, I want to use this second life of mine to help make this world a better place, if it is just a little.

If possible, I want the people that I care about to be able to live their lives fully and to be happy. I want to help them do so.

That's the only reason why I became a Demon Slayer.


	2. Chapter 2- Butterfly

To Shinobu, the first sign of change was Rengoku Kyojuro's death. It's the type of change she instinctively knew would bring about another era, the subtle shift in the world, like a small cog turning the network of gears of an unfathomably large machine.

Rengoku's death was unexpected. Everyone knew how strong he was. For him to be slain in battle meant that his opponent was exceedingly strong. The young Demon Slayers with him said that it was the Upper Moon Three that killed Rengoku.

Another good man had died.

There is a need to fill in that vacant spot. Naturally, everyone agreed with Oyakata-sama's decision to put Daiki in Rengoku's position. Daiki's strength had been recognised by everyone a long time ago, it's just that there wasn't an empty slot to put him into their ranks until now.

He should have been the pillar before her when her older sister died in the line of duty.

Rengoku was a cheery man with a positive presence on everyone. His death hit everyone hard. The three young Slayers that were with him were depressed. Daiki had gotten along well with Rengoku when the Flame Pillar was still alive despite each other's eccentricity. Now that Daiki took over Rengoku's position as a Pillar, Shinobu knew that Daiki's heart must have been feeling heavy from all the change in events.

She would know, she was once in his shoes.

Daiki had always been a little too indecisive and often lacked self-confidence, most likely due to his slave upbringing. The only time there was a change in demeanour was when he held an axe in hand. He would become extremely focused and nothing could break his concentration.

His skills with an axe are those of a craftsman who had reached the pinnacle of his craft. He got it down to an art form. Even chopping firewood looks beautiful if he is the one doing it. He is the only one who she knows is able to craft cute little wooden sculptures with a gigantic axe.

"You cannot go around looking like that now that you are a Pillar, Daiki. Come, I will give you a haircut."

Daiki's black hair is usually a shaggy mess. He never really bothered much with appearances since his hulking build and stern-looking face alone scares many people away. No one really looks at him in the face.

That will have to be fixed. To be a Pillar is to be an inspiration to the other Slayers, he cannot be seen moping about. She will start with a makeover of his appearance. Hopefully, this will cheer him up.

And so, armed with only a pair of scissors in hand, that was what she set out to do. She sat him down and started to snip at his hair, cutting it short. The aim was to make him look neat and approachable as the newest Pillar in the Demon Slaying Corps.

He is now the Tree Pillar: Daiki

"There you go! Do you like it?"

She handed him a mirror so that he can inspect the result. His eyes widened at what he saw in it, like he couldn't recognise his own reflection.

She knew he liked the new haircut when a small and gentle smile broke across his face.

"Th-"

"Ah, ah. No more of all those needless thanking, Daiki. We had long since passed that stage." She cut him off by playfully waving a single finger in front of his eyes, body leaning forward from where she is standing behind where he is sitting at so that her short arms can reach the front of his face.

"If you are free, you can go help train Tanjiro-kun and his friends. Maybe you can get them out of their depressed funk."

Daiki tilted his head a little and pointed a questioning finger at himself. Shinobu giggled.

"Yes, you."

She can see Daiki scrunching his face up a little at the thought, but he stood up and walked off in the direction where the three young Slayers are at anyway. He will be fine. He needs to be more confident in his abilities. His past does not dictate his worth or his future. What's important is what he is doing in the present to help make a better future. He's already doing a great job in that aspect.

He just needs to realise that.

Judging from the sudden screams that she recognised as the boys', Daiki must be having a field day with them. Daiki's idea of training must have been considered insane by the young Slayers' standards.

She should really wrap things up here as fast as possible and go spectate the free show. It would be so much fun!

Her eyes caught sight of the four wooden dolls in the living room of her house when she turned to leave. It was the wooden dolls that Daiki had sculpted for the four of them when Kanae was still alive. Kanao had just joined their family back then, Daiki had thought that giving her dolls would cheer her up. There were only three dolls initially. Daiki had sculpted one each for her, Kanae, and Kanao.

Her sister had asked Daiki one question.

_"Why didn't you make one for yourself? You are family too, you know?"_

The surprise on Daiki's face was as clear as day. He probably didn't think that they considered him as family too.

Upon Kanae's insistence and her own encouragement, Daiki sculpted a wooden doll of himself to add to the collection.

If only Kanae was still alive…

Shinobu sighed and shook her head to get rid of those negative thoughts. What happened had happened, no use dwelling on the past.

It would be better to look ahead into the future.

* * *

Shinobu is worried. Things doesn't seem to be looking too good.

Their Sound Pillar, Uzui Tengen is being forced into retirement after his battle with the Upper Moon Six. The loss of his left eye and arm is too severe an injury for him to continue his duties as a Pillar. They had taken down an Upper Moon, which is good news, but they sacrificed a Pillar in the process. The Upper Moon is also the lowest level among the six, which means that the power of an Upper Moon beyond Upper Moon Six is a lot stronger.

The Demon that killed her sister was an Upper Moon Two. As to what else that Demon could do, Shinobu doesn't know. All she knows is that the Demon uses a pair of sharp fans as his main weapon along with some other physical description of the Demon that her older sister had told her before she passed away. She might really need to go through with her original plan to turn her body into wisteria poison and let that Demon consume her. She cannot see any other way out of this.

Daiki would be really furious if that is how she died, but she had made her peace long ago.

Daiki had asked her to administer the same poison treatment to him. She knew that is his way of saying that he is not leaving her to do this alone. Despite every cell of her body screaming not to do it, she found herself agreeing to his request.

It's only fair. If he was the one doing the same thing behind her back, she would be angry too.

Somewhere down the line, she had grown to rely on him just as how he relied on her initially when he was suddenly thrown into the world of Demons and Demon Slayers. Somewhere down the line, they had grown to care for each other in a way that is more than just friends, but neither of them acted on it.

She doesn't feel that she deserves him. The only thing she had done for him was to nurse him back to health when she and her sister first found him, and even then, most of it was her sister's doing, not hers. She doesn't deserve someone so understanding, someone who would listen to her every frustrated rant and put up with her tantrum. She doesn't deserve someone who could identify her true feelings with just a glance despite the smiling mask she put up all the time.

She cannot promise a future with him, especially with what she had planned to do if she ever met that Demon, so she didn't say anything on this issue.

She knows that he doesn't feel that he deserves her. Maybe it's because of his past as a slave, it's hard to tell when he has difficulty speaking and also the fact that he is a certified introvert, but Daiki always had a low sense of self-worth and self-esteem. He always thinks that he isn't good enough. Not good enough to be a Demon Slayer. Not good enough to be a Pillar. Not good enough to be anything. Not good enough for her.

That's not true. He's good at understanding her. His skills with an axe are unparalleled. Only he could wield that gigantic and ridiculously heavy weapon as though it is as light as a feather and swing it as though doing an elaborate dance. Only he could make her smile from the bottom of her heart and make her temporarily forget about the anger she's been holding in her heart ever since Kanae died.

Before she knew it, he had grown to be a large tree where a small butterfly like her could take refuge and rest on.

A part of her want to make her dreams come true, a dream where she could actually live long enough to start a family with the man she loves, but that can never happen if there is still anger in her heart. She knew that she could never put down that anger in her heart and let it go. She is not a saint.

If there's a next life, she would find him no matter what and never let him go. This life, however, she would have to owe him a debt. She could never truly settle down and be with him for as long as that Demon is still roaming about, her anger will never dissipate.

He never said a word, nor did he make any indications, but she knew that he understands her and had accepted their circumstances as a fact. He understands that revenge is what she needs to have closure and he had taken it upon himself to help her in whatever ways he can.

What they can do now is to enjoy living in the present until one of them had to leave the other. Sometimes she wished that he wasn't so understanding and patient towards her, so that she wouldn't feel as bad for pushing him away and keeping him at a distance.

A distance that they will probably never close due to her own inability to put down her anger.

She can only hope that she can have the chance to meet and kill that Demon soon, for only then can she finally have a peace of mind.

* * *

In the blink of an eye, everyone is suddenly preparing for an all-out war. A war that will decide the fate of Demons and Demon Slayers. She would probably find that Demon that killed her sister soon. That Demon was an Upper Moon Two when it faced her sister, and none of the Upper Moons the Demon Slaying Corps had slain so far matches the description of the demon that had killed her sister. She doesn't know if there is any shuffling of ranks within the Upper Moons within the years following her sister's death, but if that Demon is still an Upper Moon, then it will most definitely appear in the war soon.

She brought her thoughts back to the present and carefully stirred the mixture of wisteria poison in the bottle, making sure that it is the correct amount to be safely ingested. Once done, she put the bottle down next to another identical one. She had promised him a long time ago that they will do this together.

But if he dies because of her need for revenge, if he died and she somehow lives…

She heard him knocking on the door of her office and she calls for him to enter. She took one of the bottles and offered the poison to him with a smile on her face.

If she dies, she wants him to remember her smiling face and nothing else whenever he thinks about her. She wants him to only remember the good things about her.

She knew that he trusts her with his life when he received the bottle and gulped down the poison without a second thought. This is the final administration before the big battle ahead.

"Nice weather, isn't it? Even the butterflies are fluttering about in the garden today." She said as she looked out of the window that gave them a view of the beautiful flower garden of the Butterfly Estate, trying to look as carefree and laidback as she can, trying to look like she's not the least bit affected at the thought of the upcoming battle.

It is a poor attempt in starting a conversation and they both knew it. In front of him, there's little she could do to hide her true feelings. She doesn't want to leave her only sister alone in this world and she doesn't want to leave him behind, but she desires revenge for Kanae more than anything.

Besides, she's the only one between the three of them who could start a conversation. He and Kanao can sit in the same room the entire day and not talk at all, much to her fond exasperation.

One day. One day, she will get the two of them out of their proverbial shells and have a normal conversation with each other.

She saw his lips curling upwards into a small smile from the corner of her eyes. They both sat next to each other in silence, enjoying the view of the garden while sipping on some warm tea.

After an unknown length of time, he stood up and placed his large hand on her head as if to reassure her that everything will be alright. He turned around and left the room, presumably to go and train with the other Pillars. They all need to try their best and attain the Demon Slayer Marks to increase their chances of victory as much as possible.

She finished her tea and picked up her blade before she left her own office. She may not have chosen to participate in the Pillar Training, but that is no excuse to slack off. She needs to make sure that her own body is in peak condition before their big fight.

She will have her revenge, one way or another.

Even if it means owing the man she loves the most with a debt that she can never repay.

* * *

It was unexpected.

A direct attack on the Ubuyashiki Estate is not something that anyone was expecting.

Kanao had retired to her bedroom early, so Shinobu opted to simply spend some quiet time with Daiki. She should have known that it was the calm before the storm.

The moment their Kasugai crows started barking out their messages, the both of them were already on their feet and out of the Butterfly Estate even before they could even properly register what was going on. The both of them were acting on instinct at this point, running as fast as they could towards the Ubuyashiki Estate.

The Pillars all arrived at the scene at the same time. The moment they spotted Himejima duelling with Kibutsuji Muzan, they unleashed their attacks without a single shred of hesitation.

Everything they had done till now. Everything that generations of Demon Slayers had done and endured till now, it's all for this day. Furthermore, they all had immense respect for their Oyakata-sama for what they had done for them, for being the father figure that they all lost or never had.

Their attacks were released with untold vengeance.

Muzan was a step ahead, however, and they all fell into his trap. They were all trapped in some sort of weird dimension that could shift itself whenever it wants to. Someone is controlling it, that much is certain. They just need to find that Demon.

She was separated from Daiki during that unexpected counterattack. She would be lying if she said she wasn't worried for him. Knowing Kanao, the girl which she views as her own little sister would probably be somewhere here too. She knows that the two of them are strong, but she still cannot help but to pray for their safety within the depths of her heart.

The heavy scent of blood got her wary. She tracked the scent to a shoji door and with utmost caution, she slowly opened it.

"Hm? Ah… you came? Oh! A girl! You look so young and tasty! I will have to thank Nakime later!"

Her eyes widened in shock which quickly turned to silent unbridled anger when she recognised the Demon consuming the flesh of numerous young girls who were already dead. The looks of the Demon fit the description which her older sister had told her before she breathed her last.

The Demon that had killed her sister.

_"It was a Demon with bloodstains on the top of his head. He always gives a carefree smile and he speaks in a calm, gentle manner. The weapons this Demon uses are a pair of sharp fans."_

The Demon flipped his fans open. She saw red.

The Demon kept talking on and on with that carefree smile on his face despite the atrocities he had committed. There's no way he is sane. His words got her madder at each passing second. The more she hears his voice, the more she wants to see him decay from her poison.

With a swift motion, she drew her blade and lunged.

Tonight, it is time to put things to an end.

* * *

She's furious.

No matter how many times she stabbed this bastard Demon with her blade and inject her poison into him, her poison just _won't_ work. The rate in which he heals and decompose her poison is just too fast and strong. His Blood Demon Technique grants him the power to create and produce ice, making it hard for her to get in close.

No matter what she tries, it just seems that it wouldn't be enough.

_She just could not get this Demon to **die**._

Her collarbone had been cut, several of her ribs are broken and one of her lungs had been punctured. She's also losing a lot of blood.

At this rate, she would die here. In that case, she might really need to use her last resort.

Before using her last resort, there's still one more option left. She may not have the strength to lop off the Demon's head, but if she could drive her poison into a key point, like his neck, she may be able to win.

She succeeded in stabbing the Demon's neck, but she still failed to kill him. Her poison didn't kill the Demon like she had hoped. She had pinned the Demon into the ceiling with her blade and injected the full dose of her poison into his neck, but _that damn thing is still **alive**._

She had expended all of her strength and fell from the ceiling. She is too injured to be able to continue fighting, but she still had another ace up her sleeve.

Given what she knew about this bastard Demon, he would fully consume her. Her body had been heavily altered to be highly concentrated with wisteria-based poison. If this bastard Demon ate her up, he would have eaten 37 kilograms of poison, nearly seventy times more than what is needed to kill an average Demon.

The only price to pay will be that she would be forsaking a future with her loved ones. She would never see her little sister grow up. She would never get to live the rest of her life with the man she loves. The man with so many flaws, but who also accepted her own flaws and one who understands her the most. The man she doesn't deserve and who is too insecure and kept thinking that he is not worthy enough to deserve her.

She allows a smile on her face at that thought. They are both idiots.

_Daiki, I'm sorry._

The bastard Demon lunged from the ceiling, wanting to get to her. Maybe he would eat her alive, maybe he would kill her first before eating her. Either way, she will still be getting her revenge, so its fine.

There was an angry roar and the sound of something heavy being hurled through the air. She saw the bastard Demon turning his head slightly to a side to see what was going on, and she saw the pupils in his eyes dilating slightly in fear before quickly twisting his body in mid-air, just enough for a familiar looking gigantic black axe to miss his neck and cut through half his head instead. That wound won't kill the Demon, but it is enough to stop him from eating her.

The next second, she felt a thick metal chain wrapping around her and felt herself being pulled to a corner. When she finally regained her senses, she is in Daiki's arms, who is looking down at her with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Daiki… I…"

He put her down gently in the corner of the room they are at and pat her on the head. She knew he is telling her to focus on her breathing to keep her injuries stable. He slipped her a small slip of paper, on it were words written with the charcoal pen he always brought around.

_I will free you from your hatred. So, rest._

He had obviously written this a long time ago judging from how yellow this paper is, but for some reason he never passed the note to her.

_Until now._

"Don't you know it is bad manners to interrupt someone when they are eatin- WOAH!"

Daiki's axe was at the other end of the room after he had thrown it to rescue her from the Demon. However, it is still connected to a long metal chain at the end of its handle that is still in Daiki's hands. With a powerful tug of the chain, the double blade battleaxe flew right back into Daiki's hands, nearly chopping the Demon's head off in the process.

"Now, that isn't very nic-"

The Demon's head was nearly chopped off once again when Daiki appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye and cleaved at where the Demon was standing just a moment ago. The fact that the Demon was able to avoid Daiki's strike spoke volumes of his skill. Very few Demons had managed to escape his first strike.

Daiki took a stance which Shinobu knows all too well. She had saw him practice his forms too often and had memorised every single one of it a long time ago except for the last form which she had never seen before. Daiki was the first to invent the unique Breath Style that only he uses currently in the Demon Slaying Corps. He had documented it into a book as best as he could in hopes that it might be of help to someone else in the future. Everything that is needed for those who wants to learn how to use his Breath of Tree, he wrote it down into a book that he entrusted to her for safekeeping.

He had filled up everything he could write into words in that book, only leaving the eighth and final form blank. There's no name for his final attack. If there is, he never wrote it down, only writing down the description of what the final attack could do instead of how to learn it.

She found it strange, but she never pressed for an answer.

_First Form: Woodcutter's Fury_

Another swift downwards chop of the axe greeted the Upper Moon Two before he could say another way out of that foul mouth. Daiki missed once more but he never let up on his attacks. This is an Upper Moon Two they are dealing with.

_Second Form: Growth of the Forest_

A sideway slash bisected the Demon at his waist, but the Demon regenerated in the blink of an eye.

"Alright, I'm done playing the nice guy. You are so dead."

Daiki ignored the words of the talkative Demon and immediately followed with the third strike.

_Third Form: Swirling Leaves_

Using the momentum from his second strike, Daiki continued to let the gigantic double blade axe spin as he let go of the handle and grabbed it by the chain instead. He spun the axe one round around himself, gaining even more momentum and power. From the looks on the Demon's face, the sudden gain in speed of the axe surprised him, but he still managed to avoid a blow to the neck, only sacrificing a leg in the process which he regenerated in a jiffy.

A gust of chilly wind was formed when the Demon swung his fans in retaliation.

"Don't inhale the cold air!" Shinobu shouted out in worry when she saw the attack that was being used on her being employed on him.

Daiki continues to spin his gigantic axe at a rapid speed, placing it in front of him like a shield. The speed of the spin also generated a strong gust of wind that blew the cold air away.

Shinobu's eyes widened at the sight. Where she failed, Daiki might succeed.

_He can do it._

Ice shaped in the form of lotuses sprung to life to ensnare Daiki. He placed the head of the axe on the ground behind him before using his fourth form, one that he was never forced to use before on any other demons that he had encountered.

_Fourth Form: Powerful Smash_

A swift upward swinging motion of Daiki's axe, faster than what the human eye can see, smashed all the ice lotuses in his way. Daiki leapt forward and hurled his axe at the Demon.

"You know, fights are more exciting when we are having a conversation." The Demon tried dodging the axe that is flying towards his neck. He managed to keep his head, but lost an arm in the process that he regenerated it in an instant. "Hey, you are strong. How about we introduce ourselves first? Name's Doma, what's your-"

The axe came flying back from behind the Upper Moon Two, who had now identified himself as Doma. Doma somersaulted over the flying axe without any effort. Daiki continues to swing his axe by controlling it via the metal chain attached to it, swinging it like some sort of whip and destroying the entire room they are in.

_Fifth Form: Frenzied Roots_

"Nakime isn't going to like this when she sees you destroying her precious rooms."

Multiple ice spears appeared to impale Daiki. Daiki merely grunted as he jumped into the air to avoid the initial salvo and proceeded to destroy all of the ice spears with his axe.

"Let's see how you dodge them in mid-air. Blood Demon Technique: Lotus Vines!"

A blizzard of lotus petal-shaped shards of ice whistled through the air as it flew towards Daiki to tear him into shreds. Daiki's facial expression didn't change. He calmly recalled his axe back into his hands and started moving them once more.

_Sixth Form: Protection of the Forest_

Shinobu watched in awe as Daiki's axe blurred as he swung his axe so fast that it created a protective dome around him that shielded him from the petals. Even after knowing him for so long, this is the first time she had saw him being pushed to this extent and showing this much power. Despite his immense strength, Daiki had never clamoured for glory or fame, only seeking to do the best he can as a Demon Slayer. It is this quality of his which made the other Pillars accept him so easily into their ranks, even if Daiki himself never realised it.

Daiki landed right in front of her. His landing shook the platform they are at slightly, but she found it reassuring.

"Tch, I was expecting to be done with you with that attack. Now you have ruined all my fun." Doma complained as his eyes suddenly turned sharp and cold, shaking his head with a hand partially covering his face. "I don't have any appetite now thanks to you."

Doma chuckled a little at his monologue.

"Well, Muzan-sama needs me and I cannot afford to dally here for too long. It's a shame I could not eat the both of you and have you two join me, but oh well. I guess we cannot have everything in life. Goodbye, Demon Slayers."

Shinobu's eyes widened in panic when she saw a large Bodhisattva statue came into being. Several miniature ice replicas of Doma also dotted the room. She doesn't know what the mini Domas are for, but it cannot be anything good.

There's no way Daiki can defend both of them at the same time like this.

"Daiki! Leave me! Just run!"

"No."

Before she could argue otherwise, he had picked her up and carried her on his back, letting her hold onto him by looping her arms around his neck. He placed her blade back into her hands.

"Hold… Tight…"

Despite the danger they are in, at that moment, nothing else matters. All she could register was the both of them. He is her tree, a place where a butterfly like her can take refuge and lean on like what she is doing right now.

If it's them together, they can kill this Doma guy.

"Go for it, Daiki."

Daiki crouched down slightly, one foot in front of the other as he held his axe with both hands slanted at an angle.

_Seventh Form: Forest Fire_

With a shout, the ground exploded as Daiki performed one of the most powerful swings she had ever seen as he leapt towards the ice Bodhisattva statue. The swing was so powerful, so fast, that the very air itself caught fire when the axe cleaved through. Not only was the statue of Bodhisattva destroyed in that single swing, so did the mini Domas.

Daiki had created an inferno out of thin air with just a swing of his axe.

Daiki continued his charge towards the real Doma, who is now visibly in panic at the shock of such an attack being performed. Daiki continues to perform the Seventh Form repeatedly, and although he didn't manage to get Doma's neck, each swing of his managed to cut something off Doma. Daiki's axe is now on fire from having the Seventh Form performed repeatedly at such a rapid speed. Whatever ice creations Doma wanted to use with his Blood Demon Technique, it fell with the fall of Daiki's axe.

Shinobu's nose caught a faint whiff of a familiar scent. Any other person might have missed it, but she grew up among medicinal herbs and poisonous plants. Her eyes followed the scent which her nose is picking up, and she found the source to be the blades of Daiki's axe.

_Ah, so that is his plan._

Doma's ice creations is steadily being rendered useless the moment Daiki uses his Seventh Form. With Daiki and her hot on Doma's heels, the Demon is now being forced on the defensive and is trying to escape from them.

Shinobu wasn't idle either. She may be unable to move on her own right now and is hitching a ride on Daiki's back, but her arms are still working just fine. She got in a few jabs of her blade into Doma whenever the chance presented itself, coordinating with Daiki to bring this twisted and insane Demon down.

This is the Demon that killed Kanae. It is a closure they both need.

"Feeling lightheaded yet?" Kanae taunted Doma as she continued with the thrusts of her swords as Daiki kept up the pressure with the relentless swinging of his axe. Hopefully, with this, she can distract Doma enough for Daiki to land a fatal hit.

"Daiki's axe is coated with wisteria poison. Now that it is burning with fire, it is acting like wisteria incense and it is slowly filling up the entire room. Every cut he made on you from the start of the battle till now, he is slowly mixing the poison into your bloodstream. How are you feeling right now? Have your senses start to fail you?"

They don't need to use the last resort after all. From the looks of Doma's face which is being twisted in partial madness and partial anger with that sick smile still on his face, she had succeeded in throwing him off his tempo. The wisteria poison is starting to take effect, although not as much as she had hoped. At the very least, it will slow him for a short while.

With their coordinated attacks, they had also successfully cornered Doma, there is nowhere else for him to go.

"Hahaha…" Doma began to chuckle softly, the type of mad chuckle that someone will do in desperation.

**"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"**

"Watch out, Daiki! He's desperate!"

Daiki grunted a response to her warning. He leapt back a fair distance and Shinobu looked on in surprise as he took on an unfamiliar stance.

_The Eighth Form._

With a determined howl, a huge burst of power exploded from Daiki's body itself, surprising even her. His skin started to turn a blood red, his breathing grew more rapid to be humanly possible, the temperature of his skin slowly rising to the point they feel hot to the touch.

Is he using his Breathing techniques to forcefully increase his physical limits to the very maximum? No, at this rate, he will temporarily _surpass_ his limits, but at what cost?!

"Daiki!"

Daiki turned his head back towards her slightly, giving her his usual gentle smile to reassure her.

"Together… End… This…"

Emotions she didn't know she had swirled within her. Words got stuck in her throat no matter how her mouth opened and close.

In the end, she could only nod her head at Daiki's words and tighten her grip on him.

Despite the wisteria poison trap that they had set up, they both know that Doma is too nimble. It is too hard for Daiki to land a fatal blow on his neck and her poison isn't working as intended. The amount of wisteria poison flowing through Doma's blood is also still too little to have any visible effects that is useful to them other than to weaken him slightly. For Daiki to use his final technique now, it means that he is confident that it can bring Doma down. She doesn't know how this Eighth and final technique is being activated, but she can tell that Daiki is paying a steep cost to use it.

They need to end this now.

"What? You are giving up the chance to go for the neck? Wise choice indeed, I could still dodge whatever you two throws at me." Doma jeered as he wiped out off a streak of blood from his face that is still twisted with a sick smile. "I admit that the speed in which you swing that axe is fast, but I am still faster. You will never hit my neck."

"Daiki's Eighth Form is special." Shinobu found herself speaking from where she is being carried on his back, reciting the description of the effects of the Eighth Form she can remember Daiki had written in that book. "It doesn't matter how fast you are or what kind of defence you put up. The speed in his swing is so fast that it will distort space itself. You won't be able to move, you won't be able to defend, you won't be able to run. Your neck is ours, Doma. Now stay still and let us send you to hell."

"Well, now isn't this INTERESTING?!" Doma laughed madly as ice began to bloom once more to create a thick wall of ice in front of Doma to shield him from the next attack.

"Well?! COME ON! **_LET'S PLAY!_**"

Shinobu lowered her head to whisper in Daiki's ear. This is a question that is burning in the back of her mind for a while now, and she really wants to know the answer in case one of them might not make it back alive.

"You still haven't told me the name of this final attack of yours."

Daiki let out a wolfish grin as he leapt into the air, axe raised high up with both hands. Shinobu could literally feel the power swirling and gathering at the blades of his axe.

"SHINOBU!"

She resisted the urge to laugh despite the severity of the situation. She should have guessed that he named his final and strongest attack after her. He's cute like that.

_Eighth Form: Shinobu_

With the fall of his axe, everything in front of them was torn up and thrown into a vortex of swirling burning air that rushed towards Doma. Like what was documented in the book he entrusted her with, the speed of his swing had created a distortion in space that locked everything in their path into its place, leaving them unable to move from the immense air pressure.

At the same time, Daiki is charging towards Doma with her on his back, running through the path that was cleared for them by the swirling distortion of space.

"Blood Demon Tech-"

Shinobu quickly reacted when she spotted Doma attempting to somehow cut himself into two using the ice he formed on the surface of his body in order to escape.

"OH NO YOU DON'T!"

She threw her blade with perfect accuracy, striking Doma's head in place. The poison in her blade will last long enough to buy them a few seconds of time by not allowing Doma to pull off anymore tricks.

Enough time for Daiki to cut off Doma's head at his neck.

The room they are in fell into sudden silence the moment they rushed past Doma's body. A soft thud of something landing on the floor resounded across the room.

"Ah… I lost?"

They did it. They killed the Demon which murdered Kanae.

"Rot in hell, bastard." She replied spitefully.

"I will just regen-"

Daiki's axe crushed Doma's talking head into smithereens, cutting off whatever words that crazy Demon was about to say. With another swing of the axe, Doma's headless body fell and started to crumble as they both watched it disappear into dust.

"We did it." She said excitedly in a soft voice when the last of Doma disappeared. "We did it!"

She turned excitedly to Daiki, whose body had turned back to normal after delivering that last strike.

"We did it, Daiki! We- Daiki?"

Daiki's lack of movement and response got a feeling of dread pooling in her gut. _No, it couldn't be. No, there's no way he-_

Shinobu quickly leapt off his large back, ignoring the pain of her own injuries, using her Breathing techniques to make sure that she does not lose any more blood.

She got to his front where she can see his face.

His eyes are closed, he is not moving. That is not what worried her. Her experienced eyes picked up the signs that Daiki _isn't **breathing**._

_No, no, no, nononono this cannot be true_

**"DAIKI!"**


	3. Chapter 3- Butterfly's Tree

With Muzan's death, the Demon Slaying Corps disbanded. There's no longer a need for Demon Slayers now that there are no more Demons to slay.

They lost many good men and women that night, but their long war with Demons had finally drawn to a close.

Shinobu sighed as she sat on a chair beside Daiki's bed. It has been more than two months, yet Daiki showed no signs of waking up. After they defeated Doma, she was forced to use the poison in her sword to forcefully restart Daiki's heart and keep it beating, just long enough for Kanao and members of the Kakushi to find them. They managed to stabilise his condition and since she could still move, Shinobu joined the front lines with Kanao despite her injuries.

She wasn't suited for fighting upfront face-to-face with Muzan with her injuries. Instead, she provided support and tried her best to aid her fellow Demon Slayers. It was a long and arduous battle, but they won. After generations of sacrifice from brave warriors of the Demon Slaying Corps, they finally won the battle against Muzan and his Demons.

If only Daiki would wake up, then things would be perfect.

They are both still alive. They could now reciprocate each other's feelings that she knew they both have for each other.

_So, please, wake up. Let us make amends and start anew._

Upon further diagnosis, Shinobu now knows for certain that Daiki's Eighth Form is an attack that gains power from burning his lifeforce. Using a special way of breathing, he forced his heart and lungs to go beyond their limit, forcing his body to surpass its limit and temporarily gaining power even greater than an Upper Moon One.

She really wants to reprimand him when he wakes up. Who was the one that was angry at her for coming up with a suicidal technique?

But he needs to first wake up for her to reprimand him.

She held up his large hand in her small ones, closing her eyes and resting her forehead against it, praying that he will wake up. She had already lost her older sister. She's lucky that her younger sister is still alive. If she lost him too, she-

"Shi…no…bu…"

Her eyes shot wide open and she looked up. Daiki's eyes are partially open, his breathing still weak and shallow, but he's awake.

He's _awake_.

There are a lot of things she wanted to say to him, but all of that is lost on her at that moment. The only thing she managed to do was to hug him close and bury her head into his shoulders, trying to keep her tears from flowing out.

She allows a genuine smile to form on her face, a smile from her heart. She no longer feels any form of anger. Like he promised her, he had freed her from her hatred.

He's awake. They are both alive. They can finally put down their weapons and settle down somewhere far away where no one will know them. They can start their lives anew.

With her arms still hugging him close to her, she tried her best to blink her tears away and whispered into his ear.

"Welcome back, Daiki."

* * *

Her name is Kocho Kiyo. She is seven years old this year. She has two younger siblings. Her brother, Kishita, is five this year while her youngest brother, Kahei, is only a year old.

Her father's name is Daiki. He had discarded his family name, so their family uses her mother's family name instead. Her father doesn't speak much. Her mother said that this is because her father is born with a damaged voice box. Her mother said that a person's voice box is what allows them to produce sound to speak. Even if her father cannot speak much, Kiyo knows that her father loves her very much. Her father is also very strong, easily the strongest man in the village they are in, but he rarely flaunts his strength. Instead, most of the time he is helping her mother with her work in treating the sick and injured.

Her mother is Kocho Shinobu. She is the most beautiful woman Kiyo had ever seen. She is always smiling no matter what. Her mother is also a very skilled doctor. There is nothing Kiyo knows that her mother cannot cure. Whenever someone in their village gets sick or is injured, they come to her mother for help. Her mother would help them with a smile on her face no matter how rich or poor they are. If they could not afford the treatment, she would waive it off or simply tell them to pay her at a later date. There's nothing stopping the villagers from not paying her mother at all, but her mother's kindness is infectious. They all ended up paying her back somehow, be it in the form of favours or money. Her mother is also always wearing a white haori with a butterfly wing pattern, something which her mother said used to belong to her deceased Aunt Kanae.

What she and her siblings love is the story telling sessions they would have before their parents put them to bed. Their mother will often tell them about the story of Demons and Demon Slayers, a story of how generations of Demon Slayers fought against Demons to make the world a safer place for everyone to live in. Her mother told the story so well that Kiyo almost thought that her mother had experienced the real thing herself.

But that is not possible. Demons are nothing but fiction. They are not real.

Even with her mother's good reputation and easy-going nature, there will always bound to be people who will try to take advantage of her kindness. Usually, these people came from outside their village. Most of the time, they had heard of her mother's skill in the medical field and they would travel here in search of her. Sometimes, these people are less than savoury creatures.

Kiyo remembered that there was one time a group of thugs who came knocking on their doors. Their leader was bleeding from head to toe, he was probably involved in some sort of fight before coming here. The winter season would be coming soon, and their mother had sent their father out to buy some new clothing for the entire family to keep everyone warm during winter. Kishita was excited at the idea of going out to see new places and things, so her father brought him along, leaving mother, her, and the then new-born Kahei who had just joined their family.

Their family lived in a slightly bigger house as compared to the villagers. Mother called it the Butterfly Estate. The medical wing and their house are joined to each other side by side, so that it is easier for her and father to take care of any sick patients. Kiyo faintly remembered her mother saying that this Butterfly Estate is a lot smaller than the real thing which they had moved out from. There is another Butterfly Estate?

The thugs who knocked on their doors that fateful day were rude, loud, crass, and violent. Kiyo has a feeling that they may be bandits. Kiyo was scared, but she held her baby brother close to her protectively as she stood behind her mother. Her mother seemed unaffected at whatever is going on in front of her, still talking to the group of thugs in front of them with a smile on her face, telling them to keep it down and not destroy her favourite vase that one of the potters in the village had made for her as payment for curing his sickness. Kiyo vaguely remembered about the potter. He lives about three streets down if her memory serves her right.

The leader of the thugs who was bleeding from one side of his body seemingly forgot about his injuries when he spotted her mother. He was obviously enthralled by her mother's beauty. Kiyo felt a sense of raging anger surging through her at that moment. They wouldn't have dared to do this if her father was around. Usually, people like these scums cowed the moment her father so much as glared at them.

The leader of the thugs reached out a hand to try and touch her mother's face. Kiyo had never felt so angry before. She was about to shout something at that man when her mother did something unbelievable.

She stopped the man's hand with simply a pair of chopsticks. Chopsticks she got from… somewhere.

_Where and how did her mother get the chopsticks from?! She didn't even see her mother move!_

"Ara ara, do you mind not touching me with your filthy hands? The thought of it makes me want to vomit."

Her mother is still smiling with that usual smile on her face, which is a stark contrast to the words she just spoke. That vile man tried to draw his hand back, but for some reason he cannot release his outstretched hand from the grip of her mother's chopsticks.

Kiyo was simply baffled at what was going on. Since when did her mother possess such strength?

"Kiyo, would you be a sweetie and turn around? Cover your ears and your brother's. No matter what you hear later, don't turn back until I say so, okay?"

Kiyo blinked her eyes in confusion, but still did as she was told. She gently stuffed small pieces of cloths into her brother's ears and covered hers with her hands and turned around. What is her mother planning to do?

It didn't take long. In the short moment where her ears are covered and she is facing the wall, she thought that she might have heard some screaming that were undoubtedly from the thugs, but it may be her imagination. She knows her mother is far from helpless, she had seen her easily flip a grown man over her shoulders once before, but against a group of thugs? Will her mother be alright?

She felt a light tap on her shoulders and her mother's smiling face coming into view as her mother peered from above, that usual kind smile on her face. Her mother seems to be in a good mood, seeing as how she is smiling to the point that her eyes appeared to be closed and is doing some sort of eye smile that only her mother could do.

"Everything is alright now, Kiyo!"

Kiyo turned back and was shocked at how every single thug is now prostrating themselves on the floor, shivering in fright.

_Just what did her mother do?!_

At that moment, her father walked through their front door with Kishita sitting on his broad shoulders. His father had a stunned look on his face for a brief moment when he saw the sight of those men grovelling on the floor before looking back up at their mother. The expression on his face looks as though he was asking their mother '_Do I want to know about this?_'

"Welcome back! Did the both of you have fun outside?"

Their mother dodged the topic as she feigned oblivious to the scene in front of them, catching the excitable Kishita in her arms as he bolted to her and caught her in a hug. Their father gave another look at the group of grovelling men trembling in their places on the floor and gave a shrug before walking over to their mother and gave a light kiss on her forehead. Kiyo walked up to her father, still carrying Kahei in her arms when their mother started ordering the thugs around like they are her servants. The thugs are now surprisingly obedient.

Guess her mother is more than capable of looking after herself even without their father around.

"Mother is scary." Kiyo whispered to her father when they are both out of earshot and helping him out with grounding some medicinal herbs in the room where they mix and prepare all their medicine.

Her father chuckled at her words and ruffled her hair with a hand, mirth clear in his eyes.

"She stopped the man's hand with a pair of chopsticks! **_Chopsticks!_**"

Her father nodded along, but he shows no surprise on his face. Maybe her mother did something similar before? Enough for it to be considered normal by her father? Maybe she should ask her Aunt Kanao when she comes over for her regular visits sometime in the future? Her mother is definitely avoiding her questions and her father's inability to speak properly isn't helping things.

Come to think about it, how did her parents meet? What did they do before they settled down here in this village?

Maybe she should ask them about it some other day.

* * *

It was during the winter that same year when she accidentally found two sets of clothes in her parents' drawer which she had never seen before.

It was hidden beneath a false bottom of a drawer in her parents' cabinet which they keep their clothes in. The sets of clothes she found was very neatly folded, as though someone had taken great care in doing so. These clothes look almost like uniforms and they are made of a material Kiyo had never seen or felt before. It is so light yet felt so durable. It is easily the best type of cloth she had seen. There is also a huge kanji for "Destroy" stitched on the back of each uniform.

She carefully picked a set of the uniforms up. The size of the one in her hands looks as though it would fit her mother perfectly. It definitely belongs to her mother. Does that mean that the much bigger uniform belongs to her father? And what is written in the book that is titled "Breath of Tree" that lays in that same drawer?

"That is not something you are supposed to find, Kiyo."

Kiyo jumped up a little in fright and turned around, finding her mother looking down at her with a smile on her face. Her mother took the uniform from her hands and folded it back neatly before putting it back where it was found. Her mother closed the drawer and gently ushered her out of the room.

"Mother? What was that? What did you and father used to do before you had us?"

Her mother playfully tapped a finger on Kiyo's nose.

"Why, your father and I used to hunt Demons for a living!"

Kiyo puffed up her cheeks.

"Fine, keep your secrets."

Her mother merely laughed and patted her head.

* * *

It was only another two weeks later when Kiyo found out something even more unusual about their parents. She didn't know why she didn't find out about it earlier, but maybe she was too young back then to pick up on the signs.

The Butterfly Estate is at the edge of the village. Her father had strung long lines of bells across the perimeter of their Estate that faced the surrounding forest as some sort of warning system to warn them of beasts that prowled too close to the Estate, similar to what other villagers did for their homes.

It was snowing and Kiyo wanted to go out and play in the snow. Kishita had exhausted himself and had fell asleep, so did Kahei. Her mother didn't really like the cold outside, so Kiyo's father brought her out to play instead.

She was having fun building a snowman with her father at the back of the Estate when her father suddenly tensed and faced a certain direction. A few seconds later, Kiyo heard the howling of wolves. From the sound of it, the wolves are quickly circling them in, still hidden within the shadw of the trees.

The bells jingled. The pack of wolves had entered the safety perimeter that her father had set up around the Estate.

Her father immediately picked her up with a hand and easily carried her with a single arm. He jumped across the backyard in a single leap just as wolves started rushing towards them.

There's no way any ordinary human could clear such a distance with just a single jump.

The wolves are still hot on their heels. Her father entered a nearby wooden shack which he usually stores his tools. It is a storeroom which Kiyo had only entered once before, there's nothing fun in here so she never came back to visit.

Her father gently let her down on the floor before lifting up a floorboard, revealing a hidden compartment. What's with her parents' fondness for hidden compartments?!

Her father picked up a gigantic double blade axe with just one hand from the compartment. His other hand ruffled her hair as he headed out and told her a single word.

"Stay."

Kiyo is scared. This is different from the usual riff-raffs her father put into place. These wolves must be starving for them to be willing to come close to any human establishment. They will be vicious.

She doesn't want her father to die.

Her father had already walked out and closed the door to the shack behind him. Kiyo quickly shifted herself to peek through the gaps of the wooden wall of the shack. She saw her father standing straight and tall with that gigantic jet black axe in hand, totally unafraid of the pack of wolves that is circling him.

One of the wolves pounced from behind and Kiyo let out a shocked gasp as her hands instinctively went to cover her mouth.

What's amazing was that her father simply shifted his axe and gave a powerful swing. She didn't even see how his arms moved. One moment the wolves were around him, still alive. The next moment, they all lay dead on the ground, each of them cleaved into two pieces. The blood of the wolves painted a scarlet red against the white of the snowy ground.

Her father returned back to the shack, sending her a reassuring smile as he placed that gigantic weapon back into the hidden compartment. There isn't even a drop of blood on her father's axe. Upon closer inspection, Kiyo saw that part of the axe had already rusted. Some part of the blade had already cracked, but that is definitely not from her father's fight with the wolves since the cracks looked old.

It looked as if her father had done battle with something even more fearsome than wolves with that axe a long time ago.

Her eyes caught sight of a sheathed sword within the hidden compartment when her father went to put that heavy looking axe back into it. She instinctively reached out a hand to touch the sword, only for her father to grab onto her wrist and prevented her from doing so.

"Poi…son…"

That sword is poisonous? The only one who actively mixes poison for fun in their family is her eccentric mother. There are only two weapons here in the hidden compartment as far as she could see, the gigantic axe which probably weighs more than their entire family combined, and that sheathed sword. If the axe belongs to their father, then…

"Is the sword mother's?"

Her father nodded as he placed the dusty floorboard back to where it is supposed to be, hiding the two weapons from view.

Her father let her sit on his broad shoulders as they walked back to their house, which isn't far from the shack. The moment they entered, their mother was already there with cups of steaming hot tea for them to drink and warm themselves.

"I assume we will be having wolf meat for dinner tonight? Maybe a few new fur pelts to make something for Kishita? He doesn't seem to do too well in the cold."

Now that Kiyo knows what to look for, she noticed it.

Her parents never made a single sound when they moved. Her parents' footsteps are always silent. It's like they don't even notice that they are actively doing it. It's how her mother always managed to sneak up to her undetected, like how she surprised her the other day when she found her parents' weird uniform-like clothes.

One thing is for certain. Her parents are definitely not normal people.

* * *

It was two years later when she realised how powerful her parents are.

A large group of bandits had decided to attack and pillage their village. The villagers are fighting back. Since their village is located in a remote area, they cannot count on the government's troops to arrive anytime soon. They have to defend themselves until then.

There were too many bandits. At this rate, the entire village will be razed to the ground.

Her mother ushered the three of them into that wooden shack that Kiyo's father hid her from the wolves two years ago. Her father lifted up that same floorboard once more, revealing the hidden compartment.

"Ara ara, how long is it since I last picked up my blade?" Her mother mused as she unsheathed her sword and did some fancy twirling before holding it in front of her eyes. Kiyo can tell that her mother is no stranger to using a blade from that alone, even if her mother's blade is shaped weirdly.

"Huh, it had rusted a little. Can't be helped, I guess. We didn't exactly go about maintaining our weapons after that last battle."

Her father shrugged as he picked up that heavy looking axe. Kishita and Kahei only had looks of awe on their face upon seeing what their father did, the severity of the bandit situation not sinking into their heads just yet.

"Look after your siblings, okay?" Her mother said to her with a smile as she hugged all three of them close. "Your father and I won't take too long. We will just be out there scaring these bandits away."

"Come back safe." Kiyo whispered into her mother's ear. Her mother let out a soft laugh at those words.

"Oh, your father and I had dealt with worse before on a daily basis." Her mother waved a hand in front of her flippantly before turning back to their father, who still has that amused expression on his face. "Right, anata?"

Their father merely nodded in agreement.

Kiyo doesn't know what happened between the time period the parents left them in the shack and when they returned. All she knew was that the villagers held them in very high regard after that. According to some of the villagers, their father is like a god of war, none could stand in his way. Their mother is like a flitting butterfly, moving at speeds too fast for anyone to properly see. Her parents did not kill a single bandit as far as she knew, only knocking them out for the rest of the villagers to tie them up and hand them to the government when their troops arrived.

Kiyo only knew that her parents decided to move out of the village two days later right after the bandit attack. According to her mother, they don't want any meddlesome government officials to come around and poke their noses in things they shouldn't have business knowing after their showy display.

Thus, the five of them are now trekking to where their Aunt Kanao is living. They will be living with their Aunt Kanao until her parents had decided where to settle down next. The entire family is sitting on a cart that is being pulled along by a mule together with their belongings. Her father is walking beside the cart, carrying the large axe which is wrapped in cloth from top to bottom to hide it from view. Mother had said that only her father could carry such a heavy thing, the poor mule wouldn't have been able to pull it along if he put it on the cart.

Their mother is holding a sleeping Kahei in her arms, her sword attached to her belt. Kishita is lazily playing with a wooden top their father had made for him while she is sitting on her father's broad shoulders. She had always enjoy sitting on her father's shoulders and seeing what he could see.

Every time Kiyo found out more about their parents, she only got more questions than answers. She decided to ask her mother one more time.

"Mother? What did you and father really used to do before you had us?"

Her mother clapped her hands once happily, her usual large smile still on her face and her closed eyes curved upwards into an eye smile.

"Why, I'm glad you asked, Kiyo! Your father and I used to be Demon Slayers! In fact, your Aunt Kanao and Uncle Tanjiro was one too!"

Kishita simply scoffed at the ridiculous answer, but for some reason, Kiyo knows that her mother is telling the truth no matter how unbelievable it sounded.

Furthermore, her father didn't give any indications that indicated that her mother is lying. He is simply humming a tune under his breath as he held her with a hand so that she doesn't accidentally fall off his shoulders.

"Then why aren't you and father not Demon Slayers anymore?"

Her mother simply gave her another one of her gentle smiles.

"There's no point in being a Demon Slayer if there are no Demons to slay, right?"

"You and father killed all the Demons?" Kishita asked sarcastically, obviously not believing anything their mother just said. Their mother has a track record for saying funny things to mess with everyone's heads for the fun of it, so the distrust is understandable.

Their parents shared a brief look at each other, as if sharing a secret that only the two of them knew about.

"Well, not _us_ per say, but yup! All the Demons are dead! And then the Demon Slaying Corps was disbanded since its purpose is done, and your father and I decided to settle down and have the three of you! End of story!"

"Yeah, right." Kishita rolled his eyes, which only incited a laugh from their mother before she starts poking at his cheeks with a finger to tease him for being cute.

Kiyo smiled at her father, who smiled back at her in return. Kishita won't get it now, but he will in the future. There are no other explanations for all the oddities she found out about their parents and to explain the superhuman feats her parents could do.

"The two of you must have been really cool Demon Slayers."

Her father ruffled her hair fondly with his large hand as reply. Her mother continues to laugh happily, who somehow heard the soft words Kiyo whispered to her father.

"That's right!"

**~END~**

* * *

**AN: It's been officially a year since I started out as a writer on FFnet, and I decided to commemorate it by doing something I always wanted to try and keep failing to do, which is to write a _SHORT_ story. I had binged read the manga within two days and started writing this story immediately, breaking my own conventions since I never read any of the fanfics for this fandom before I post this. I would usually read a fanfic or two about a fandom I wanted to write about before I write a fanfic myself, so such an arrangement is a first.**

**If there are any facts about Kimetsu no Yaiba that I got wrong, do bear with it since I only had two days worth of knowledge about it (LOL). Hopefully this story is enjoyable for you and will be a refreshing read from the fanfics on this site.**

**In any case, hoped you enjoyed this story.**

**Cheers,**

**Banix**


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